Falls Church: La Caraquena Latin American Cuisine

For June's dining club we decided to head over to La Caraquena Latin American Cuisine in Falls Church. My friend Jessie saw it on Diners, Drive Ins and Dives and she has been dying to try it ever since. 

Being the lushes that we are, a few of us decided to order some drinks while we waited for everyone else to get there. Plain Margarita, Mango Margarita and a Passion-fruit sort of drink. All delicious and packed a punch. 

The table decided to split an order of the plantains for an appetizer which were a little soggy, but overall the flavor was really good. 

I ordered one of the arepas that Guy tried, Reina pepeada chicken salad blend made of avocado and mayo. The table loved this but unfortunately I was not a fan because of the mayonnaise flavor. If you like avocados and mayonnaise this would be a heavenly dish for you.

Carries also got an arepa, JP's Favorite which consisted of seasoned thin slices of steak  sauteed onions, tomatoes and cilantro. This was delicious, all of the flavors went together perfectly.

Lili tried the Sopa de frijoles (black bean soup pretty much) Latin style soup with Spanish sausage topped with Latin white cheese, micro cilantro and garlic croutons. She liked the soup but she has had better. 

Megan got a chicken sandwich, El Sabrosa, wheat berry crown roll spiced up with a homemade chipotle tartar sauce and filled with thin grilled slices of chicken breast, Gouda cheese and fresh avocado slices. There was a lot of flavors on the sandwich but they all went together well.

Jessie got a chicken dish, Pollo La Caraquena Latin-style baked chicken served with black beans and white rice. The sauce on this was fantastic. It was savory and rich (but not so much that you could only eat a few bites) with a kick to it.

We all split the Quatro Leches Cake (thats not an error...4 MILKS instead of 3). A heavenly, moist and flavorful cake. Jessie thought it was important to quote "It's so good I'd eat it off the floor," a little Miranda action from SATC??

Overall this restaurant was pretty good, worth a visit. They serve unique food, but it's a little pricey. I liked it, I just didn't love it, but I recommend trying it out at least once! Although some of my friends want to come back just for the quatro leches cake :)

I would strongly suggest making reservations as the restaurant gets super packed around 6:30-7:00. Parking is also weird, but there is street parking all around and a motel you can park in if there is space. 

300 W Broad Street
Falls Church, VA
703-533-0076